1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an articulated cable protection and guide apparatus for protecting and guiding flexible cables and hoses such as electric cables, optical fiber cables and fluid supplying hoses (referred to as ‘cables’ hereinafter) used for machine tools, electronic devices, industrial robots, transportation machines and others to feed power, fluid, air and other mediums to those moving machines or to a moving part of the machines.
2. Related Art
If cables are to be connected to a moving body of a machine tool, a civil engineering machine, a conveying apparatus and other devices without protection in an exposed state, the cables may be damaged by causing intolerable torsion or tension when they are moved. Then, a cable protection and guide device for supporting and guiding those cables is used.
In Japanese Patent No. 4157096 (Claims, Paragraphs [0031] through [0034], FIG. 21) a prior art cable protection and guide apparatus is disclosed. The disclosure includes conductors, conduits for conveying gas, and supporting members composed of continuous material strips. The supporting members each having a series of non-interlocked action-limited solid bodies are sealed within a plurality of channels and are disposed in parallel.